It’s a wonderful world and it is a wonderful life! And, yesterday, thanks to my wonderful family, I got to live my own It's a Wonderful Life movie scene. Thanks to ALL my friends & fam who shared Christmas wishes via video from their homes this holiday season!
BACK STORY:
I'm 39 years old and this is the 1st year in my life that I will not be home for Christmas. I've lived in California for 17 years, and every year, I managed to make it home. :[
My parents were inspired by a Remote Year video that Travis and Samantha created for our transition from Europe to Asia. They recorded our families back home, wishing us well in Asia. Then, they showed the compilation at a group event. It was nothing short of spectacular!
So, my parents took a page out of Tramantha's book and reached out to all my friends and family to create a Christmas compilation video for me.
A very special THANK YOU to my parents, Mark and Jeanne, for putting together such an awesome gift! It is not easy to compile everyone’s videos and pics and assemble them in such a beautiful way. AMAZING!
I was blown away by the love, warmth and Christmas spirit. 34 mins of love!
The first 1/3rd of the video, my jaw was dropped seeing the wonderful wishes from various family groups around the U.S. Everyone got SO CREATIVE! There were custom poems, and songs, creative montages, and random awesomeness!
Then, it went into various friends from around the U.S., and I was thinkin’ “WHOA, this is unreal!”
Mind blown. Like when I watched the Battlestar Galactica Season 3 final.
And, then it circled back around to family, and even featured my teddy bear that I hadn’t talked to in 30+ years: Teddy!! Totally forgot what Teddy looked like!
And, then there was a nostalgic slideshow of throwback pics, and some video of my church from when I was a kid. The slideshows were set to one of my favorite Christmas hymns, “You are the Gift”, by Charlie Crutcher.
And, then...I may have just shed a tear.
This year, I’ve traveled the world, and seen so many awe inspiring sights. And, I appreciate the support of all my friends and family at home, following along with my Facebook posts, pics and blog.
It is hard to be away from friends and family while traveling. But, seeing this video reminded me how phenomenal my friends and family are!
- 130 people
- 6 dogs
- 1 fish
- 1 teddy bear
- ~20 figurines
That many people took the time out of their busy holidays schedules to send me some love.
I feel so loved and so wonderful. Like good ole' George Bailey from Bedford Falls.
"Remember, NO man is a failure who has FRIENDS.”
And here is the masterpiece! Feel free to watch or scrub through and find your video.
THANK YOU ALL, once again from the bottom of my heart! Miss you all!!! Much love from Chaing Mai!!!